Representatives from major ACP (African, Caribbean and Pacific) and European banana producers are holding a summit today (17 September) and tomorrow to discuss future strategies to block any reduction of the current EU import tariffs imposed on Latin American banana imports.
In a statement, the Association of European Banana Producers (APEB) said that following the failure of recent WTO negotiations, the ACP and European banana producers remained “united in the face of the risk of a reduction of the tariffs”.
The group claimed that the current tariff of €176 was “already very advantageous” for exporting countries. They argued that any reduction would weaken the ACP and European banana producers from a social, economic, environmental and regional perspective.
APEB added: “The ACP and European banana producers remain united and will define their positions and decide upon action to be taken in order to defend their interests and prevent a tariff reduction.”
